Glass Slipper
by liahime
Summary: Rika has been blackmailed into starring in her crazy drama teacher's play of Cinderella. Little does she know how much it'll change her life.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Do you think the word disclaimer would be on this if I owned this? Read below to see if I own this stuff...Here's the question: Does liahime own this stuff, everyone:  
  
"NO."  
  
The drama teacher got on her knees in front of the auburn haired girl. "PLEASE..."  
  
The girl closed her amethyst eyes in impatience. "I said, NO."  
  
"Please, no one else who can act will take the spot, and this play MUST be a success...please?"  
  
She stayed silent. The drama teacher got desperate.  
  
"An A for the rest of the semester then. Please, you really really need to do this." Again, the silence. The drama teacher became angry. "YOU WILL DO THIS MISS MAKINO OR YOU WILL HAVE DETENTION FOR THE REST OF THE SEMESTER!!! THIS IS FOR THE GOOD OF YOUR SCHOOL!" The once chattering drama class fell silent under the roar of their teacher. "SO SIGN THE AUDITION FORM NOW!" She practically stabbed the pen and paper into the girl sitting on the chair.  
  
The girl sighed and wrote her name on the slip as well as one could when being glared at by your evil drama teacher without a table.  
  
On the audition form for the school play that the teacher was now evilly laughing over was the name, in smudged ink:  
  
Rika Makino 


	2. One Slipper of Silver

Please imagine a lovely disclaimer saying liahime will never own Digimon:  
  
Thank you.  
  
Chapter One: One Slipper of Silver:  
  
"She did that?!" Jeri squealed. "Seriously!? In front of the WHOLE class?!"  
  
(A/N: How would you describe Jeri's hair color? Sorry...) Rika nodded.  
  
Jeri started to laugh. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU ACTUALLY ARE GOING TO BE CINDERELLA RIKA!!! IT IS GONNA BE SO FUNNY!!! HAHAHAHA"  
  
The entire hall stopped to stare at Rika and the hysterical Jeri.  
  
Absolute silence.. "Thanks Jeri... thanks a lot..." Rika's mood wasn't as improved as she hoped it would have been. Instantly the hall filled with chatter and gossip again as Rika glared at them. Jeri continued to laugh, oblivious to Rika's mood and the vein sticking out on her forehead. The vein grew bigger and bigger, and Jeri was laughing harder and harder as they walked to their science class. Right before Rika was about to blow and Jeri was about to cry laughing, a snotty voice interrupted them.  
  
"This is so like, cheerleader and dance team territory, so like get out, dorks."  
  
Jeri quit laughing. This was the voice of their very own junior high (or should I change it to high school?) blonde preppy cheerleading queen, Ayashi Fujiwara.  
  
"Do you need it translated, little girls? Go like, totally AWAY from ME.. like, you're unpopular vibes will get on me." Her followers laughed. (How descriptive..)  
  
Rika glared at them. "Let us through, Fujiwara." Jeri tugged on Rika's sleeve. "er.. Rika, c'mon.. we can go around if we hurry."  
  
Ayashi smirked. "That's right little girls, run along now and go away." She stuck her hip out in her own version of a threatening pose.  
  
Rika got into a fighting stance. "Leave Jeri out of this, Fujiwara."  
  
Ayashi smirked again. "Don't waste my time, girl."  
  
"This is the last time.. let us through, and no one'll get hurt."  
  
Ayashi and her followers stuck their hips out more. "Go away, NOW..."  
  
"And what if they don't WANT to go away, Ayashi?" Half the girls started to swoon, most of them began to blush. He normally had that effect on people. Ryo Akiyama, the "Digimon King" of the school, continued. "Rika, you ok?"  
  
"I'm FINE."  
  
He ignored her glare. "Great to hear it pumpkin. Jeri, you ok?" She nodded. "Then my work here is done." He paused. "Oh, and wild cat?" Rika looked at him.  
  
"Congrats on getting the part." 


	3. Two Slippers of Gold

The Lovely Disclaimer that liahime keeps forgetting and putting in at the very last moment: I do not own Digimon and etc. I own only the drama and science teacher, and Ayashi Fujiwara... SO THERE

It would have been wonderful to say that Rika Nonaka and Ayashi Fujiwara were not in

the same English class together.

So I will. Rika Nonaka and Ayashi Fujiwara are not in the same english class together.

They are in the same science class however

And guess what! They sit right next to each other

Rika and Ayashi glared at each other. (well, Ayashi glared as much as one possibly

can without messing up their make up) Without turning their backs to each other,

they slowly sat in their seats.

"Oof." Ayashi stumbled over her #1 fanclub member and landed on her butt. Her

adoring fan put out his hand to help her. She swished her blonde hair in his face.

"Back off, loser."

"Aww.....Fujiwara-san.. c'mon.. you know you like me.."

"Shidoa. I do NOT like you. Nor your geeky friends. If you have any."

Kazu Shidoa crumbled. He slunk back to his seat. Even though he got insulted alot by Rika,

this was different. Not many people can stand insults from Ayashi Fujiwara. Even though

her insults weren't as cutting as they could be, the way she said them, staring at you

with her double lidded mascara lined gray eyes made you feel low as a worm.

Rika tried not to laugh...really. But there is something hilarious about seeing the

world's greatest loser try to flirt with the school's prep queen. She ended up

choking her laugh as much as she could, ending up coughing and then laughing hard.

"Something funny,Miss Nonaka?" The science teacher, Mr. Zakisoba frowned at Rika. Instantly

Rika sat up straighter.

"Nothing, sir."

"Good. Please restrain your laughter for the lunch period then." He glanced out the open door as

the bell for the class to begin rang. "Class has begun."

The science class started. Mr. Zakisoba picked up his pointer and pointed at types of clouds

and droned on about their names. Almost immediately, his voice fell into a monotonous

pattern about types of clouds and their formations.

Rika picked up her pencil to take notes, trying to pay attention without falling asleep.

Something hit her on her side. She picked it up and wished she hadn't. A spitball..no,

a tissue with nail polish. Her fingers became smeared with pink polish. Ayashi looked

to the front of the room with her normal blank stare, gazing stupidly into space, trying to

look innocent. Two could play at that game. She ripped a bit of her note paper off, spit

into it, crumbled it up and threw it at Ayashi, aiming for her cheek. She didn't miss..

Ayashi yelped as the paper touched her. Rika suddenly became fascinated with her text.

Mr. Zakisoba glared at Ayashi and continued on his monotonous explanation why it was

very useful to know the difference between stratus and cirrus.

A fleck of nail polish, purple, hit Rika in her hair. "You ruined my make up, I ruin your

hair!"A flurry of nail polish sped through Rika as she turned to launch another spitball.

Yep.. Splat on her nose.

"Why you.." Rika growled, launching the spitball.

A flurry of nail polish and a spitballs flew in the narrow space between Rika and Ayashi,

splattering on hair, face, desk, and about everywhere.

"And that concludes the importance of the cirrus cloud." Mr. Zakisoba looked up from the

his notes. " Miss Nonaka? Miss Fujiwara?" He glanced at the nail polish and spit ball covered

girls. Another famous glare. "Detention. Tomorrow."

Rika and Ayashi rose up, protesting. The bored science class stared at them. Rika went first.

"Sir,I have a drama practice that day! I can't miss it!" she pleaded, glad that being in the play

finally had a use.

He gave her a blank stare. " I said DETENTION, Miss Nonaka. For three more days now." He paused.

"I suppose it goes for Miss Fujiwara as well. Here." He handed them both a yellow detention slip.

Ayashi wasn't as reasonable. "You beeping evil beep old geezer!!! MY DADDY WILL SUE YOU! THEN

YOU WILL BE FIRED AND NEVER EVER TEACH AGAIN!!"

He frowned at her. "Two more days for you, Miss Fujiwara. Now as we were discussing.." He began the

monotonous speech again.

Both girls glared at each other as they sat down. (Ayashi wasn't worried about her makeup anymore..

It was already ruined and she'd have to fix it.. she would skip english.) Then, they said the same

thing, at the same time.

"This is all your fault."

There!! Now I must put in my comments, cuz I waited through all of that not to "disrupt" the story,

as one of my helpful (no sarcasm) reviewers told me to!! ;

Ok!! This is my longest chapter yet!!! YAY YAY!! I am VERY sorry I couldn't update sooner!!

My internet was being evil and wouldn't pop up like a good little browser should.. 

and then when the internet did pop up one time, the server thing that you need was broken.

ARGH!! So I tried to write a longer chapter.. And there will be an even longer one next time...

So there.

Thank you wonderful and faithful (I hope..) reviewers and readers who should have reviewed any ways

for being patient with liahime and her evil internet.. (can you believe she has 3 computers in the house,

and NONE (that she has access to) have working internet!?!)

By the way, should I keep Kazu having a crush on Ayashi? That was a random thought I had some minutes ago. Send lots of suggestions for stuff... and by the way... I need suggestions for the cast of Cinderella...Here's what I have open: (No these are not important roles.. First come, first serve.)

Random Villager The Messenger:

Random Villager Random Villager

Random Villager Guards 1, 2,3 :

Random Shouting Person:

Rich Person 1:Rich Person 2:

Really Rich Person:

Thank you, wonderful reviewers!! (Oh, if you want me to post your names, (or at least pen names) just ask and I'll do it!) liahime.


	4. Three Slippers of Velvet

I do not own Digimon, darling. If I did, I wouldn't be writing a disclaimer, no?

Glass Slipper by liahime

Three Slippers of Velvet:

This is all your fault, Nonaka." Ayashi glared at Rika as they walked down the hall to the detention room. "If it wasn't for you, I'd probably be out on a date with-" She smiled to herself. "Ryo."

Rika snorted. "Yeah. Keep telling yourself that, Fujiwara."

"It's not like a little kid like _you _could go and even have the tiniest chance with Ryo. You're just jealous of me. Ryo, like you? Let's not fool ourselves, darling."

Rika glared at Ayashi. "Look. There is no chance of me getting close to that creep, Fujiwara. He's a stuck up, arrogant, lazy, perverted guy with hair."

"He is _so _not perverted. I should know. I'm the president of his fan club." Ayashi looked down her nose- as much as possible- at the taller girl.

Rika raised an eyebrow.

"OOH, YOU INSOLENT LITTLE-" Ayashi steamed, stomping her foot down hard. "I AM GOING TO SUE YOU FOR THIS, AND YOU AND YOUR MOM WILL LIVE OUT IN THE STREET, NONAKA!" She slammed her foot hard into the tiled floor, so hard that the heel of her shoe broke off.

"NOW LOOK WHAT YOU'VE MADE ME DO!" Ayashi shrieked. She pulled out her cellphone and started to dial in a number, still screaming. "YOU RUINED MY RUMIKO MODEL SHOE! IT COST MORE THAN YOUR MOM WILL MAKE IN HER LIFETIME!"

Rika looked at the shoe with her mother's signature engraved into the side. "I doubt it."

"I AM SO GOING TO SUE YOU-"

Suddenly the door to the detention room swung open. The famous Zakisoba monotone droned out. "Late, thirty minutes added." He pointed to the desks. "You can start scraping the gum off those."

They were disgusting at the nicest possible way to put it. Gum encrusted, candy stuck in the gum, and spit marks were washed all over the thing. It wasn't pleasant. Zakisoba pointed to the floor. "That's going to be washed as well. Once you are done, come see me." He handed them both a plastic knife and walked to his desk. "I'll be watching. No talking."

"NOT SO FAST, KENJI!"

Mr. Zakisoba shot up from his chair. The door banged open, and in walked the school's most feared teacher- the drama teacher. With her flamingo-pink hair and her huge, extremely loud mouth that could project her voice across a football field, she was the school's winner of Strangest Teacher of The Year (and the next, and the year after that too). Yumi Sarawatari.

"KENJI. WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING TO THESE POOR GIRLS?" Her voice rose an octave. Mr. Zakisoba Kenji flinched.

"They're in my- my detention, Sarawatari-san."

"KENJI, I DO BELIEVE THAT THESE _POOR , INNOCENT GIRLS _CAN NOT BE FORCED TO THIS _CRUEL, INHUMANE WORK_! THINK ABOUT WHAT THE HEADMASTER WOULD SAY!"

He seemed to shrink in his chair. "They were fight-"

"BUT I'M SURE YOU'LL FORGIVE THEM, WON'T YOU, KENJI!"

"Of course not."

"WHAT?"

"No." He crossed his arms. "They need to realize the seriousness of their-" Quickly, the drama teacher had him by the nose, twisting just enough to make it hurt.

"Now Kenji," she hissed. "We don't want to stunt their growth in the arts, do we, Kenji?" She smiled at him. "So I'll just take them from your hands and leave." He managed a tiny squeak. "Yes?"

He nodded frantically, with the nose on his hand.

"Thank you, Kenji. I knew you would understand." She stood up and dragged two stunned "poor innocent girls" out the hall and to the drama room.

Once they'd been dragged there, Yumi Sarawatari looked at her new drama stars. "Now girls. You will be in a very important part. As Cinderella, the beautiful young girl. Rika, I decided that you'll be a perfect Cinderella, so I signed you up, and guess what? You passed auditions perfectly."

"WHAT?"

"SHE CAN'T BE THE STAR!"

"I don't even WANT to be in this stupid play!"

"SHE CAN'T BE THE STAR!"

"I hate drama! I hate acting! Hate dresses!"

"SHE CAN'T BE THE STAR!"

"I WON'T DO IT!"

"SHE CAN'T BE THE- oh. Well, since she won't do it, I'll do it FOR her!"

The teacher looked down at them. "Shut up."

She got down and stared at them, much like how she stared at Mr. Zakisoba. "You are doing this lovely play, and you will love it, understand? You have all signed the contract, and you can't back out now. Or you can go back and scrape gum. With a toothbrush. Your choice. Are you in or out?"

Ayashi squeaked. "In."

Rika gulped. "In."

The door burst open, and Takato, Kazu, Henry, and Kenta came in, leading a bunch of hyper kids, singing.

"Are you in or out?

Double-crossers or devout?

Put your faith in me

Pretty soon you'll see

I'm the prince of generosity

Are you foe or friend?

Here's the path I recommend

You want a ride to fame-"

They came to an almost screeching halt. Henry looked amazed. "Rika! What are you doing in drama?"

Rika mumbled something.

The doors slammed open for the third time that afternoon. A boy rushed into the room and slammed the door shut again, wedging a ruler in between the handles. He looked up and grinned. "I can't help it, I'm too loved." He laughed. "Sorry I'm late."

Ayashi blushed. "Ryo!"

Ryo looked a bit worried. "Ayashi."

"OH MY GOSH! I am the president of your fan club!"

"Ah, Ayashi..."

"Will you go out with me? Please?"

"Er..."

"OH MY GOSH! RYO AKIYAMA IS-" Someone's hand slapped her, ruining the perfect foundation and who knows what on her face. Small plastic eyelashes fluttered towards the floor.

"Shut. Up. Ayashi." Rika glared at her. Ryo watched, amused.

The drama teacher also pretended it didn't happen. Cheerfully, she just handed out scripts and assigned people to their roles and future chairs.

Rika slumped in one of the plastic folding chairs, scowling at her script. She had been trying to avoid the drama room and "conveniently forget" the play- forever. If the drama teacher hadn't done this...

_After Drama Practice..._

"Hey Wildcat."

"Mmph."

"Are you jealous?"

This completely threw Rika off. She continued walking out the door. Jealous? Of who?

"You are, aren't you."

She turned around. "Jealous? Of what?"

"Rika, you know you're jealous of Ayashi. If you want to be the president of my fan club, treat me well, and just tell me, OK?"

"WHAT!"

Ryo laughed. "Never mind. Forget I even mentioned it."

Rika scowled at him. "You should." He scowled back, nearly matching her, except for his crossed eyes.

Rika laughed. It was a laugh that was seemingly squashed down and pulled down, but it slowly crept up her throat, making her eyes smile first, and then spill out of her mouth. She couldn't help it. Her entire body told her not to, but she laughed. Ryo took advantage of the moment and grabbed her school bag.

"Hey!" Rika tried to snatch the bag back.

He lightly jumped aside. "C'mon pumpkin. Once."

"Akiyama!"

They ran through the streets, chasing each other. A photographer stopped walking down the quiet street and smiled at them, grabbing her camera. She snapped two instant photos and ran over to them.

"Here. You two are such a cute couple! It's free of course. I specialize in couple-shots. Call me if you want a shoot!" Then she bounded away.

Rika and Ryo were left in mid-run, holding a photo. The photographer had done a good job. They were caught in eternal sunlight, running after each other. Someone might actually call it cute.

But of course, not Rika. She punched Ryo in the arm. "My bag."

He laughed. "No." Still holding the pictures, Rika's bag, and his own, they walked down the street together.

"This your house?"

"Yeah."

He bowed, and with a flourish he presented Rika her bag. "My princess, Cinderella."

She grabbed the bag from his hands.

"Ah, the princess is such an icy queen to serve."

"Akiyama do you-"

"Call me Ryo, OK, Rika?"

"No, _Akiyama._"

Ryo was apparently not listening, just looking at one of the trees.

"Akiyama."

"This isn't funny."

"Augh."

"RYO."

He looked up. "Hm?"

"Fine. I'll call you.." she paused and sighed. "Ryo."

He grinned triumphantly. "See you tomorrow, Wildcat!"

As he walked away, with one bag, one picture, Rika smiled a tiny bit. "Bye...Ryo."

**REVIEWS**

**krista- **ok... Thank you for not killing me.. Thanks for waiting such a long time!

**Eve-** yay! your comment made me want to write more... so I wrote this chapter! (Finally!)

**nipa girl- **I'll try to write more.. And a lot faster too...

**Evil Queen- **thanks for the suggestions! I'm using some in the next chapter.. thanks for the cookie!

**Dbzgtfan2004- **no, this isn't a rika-takato story. No offense, but I don't like that couple.

**Ao-Senshi- **Sorry... I'll try to fix my mistakes after this! Thank you! Really! I'll be more careful and proofread more now.

**RikaTabithaStar- **Thanks for suggestions

**Cold Hearted Ice Queen- **I'll update ASAP!

**GTKari-123- **sure! You can be one of the evil stepsisters!

**Luzr-Gurl13- **Updating! Very soon!

**Ok, thank you to everyone everyone everyone who read this story. I know it's been FOREVER since I updated, but I finally have a computer that works. Thank you all for reading! I'll try not to make as many mistakes, Ao-Senshi... I'll try to work hard.. This chapter was created from hunger and frozen hands, so it's a bit random.. Oh well. The next one will be better!**

**liahime**


	5. 4 Slippers of Iron

1

Glass Slipper by liahime

4 Slippers of Iron:

Disclaimer: Liahime probably doesn't own Digimon. Guess why? (Hint. It has to do with the word Disclaimer.)

Ayashi was steaming. "WHY did they, those idiotic teachers, invent something like PE!"

Asuka, timidly fading into the corner of the gym lockers, whispered something. "Maybe... maybe it's for our physical wellness and health?"

"Are you CRAZY!" She threw a hairbrush at her.

"Just a suggestion! Stupid suggestion! Sorry A- Miss Fujiwara."

"You should be, Asuka." An evil light lit up in Ayashi's eyes. "You're so sorry, that you'll go and steal Miss Nonaka's clothes and come back to me with them."

One of the more intellectually-challenged girls laughed. "Ayashi, you perv-" She was quickly silenced by another hairbrush. Ayashi continued.

"And then, Asuka, and everyone else, we shall," she paused dramaticallly, "Flush them down the TOILET!" She cackled.

"Er...Miss Fujiwara? Are you sure?"Ayashi glared at her and kept cackling.

"Yes, I am, Midori." She cackled. "Go, Asuka. Go!" Her voice raised in pitch as she cackled evilly in the girls' locker room.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the locker room, Asuka was creeping away. Should she do this? It was one thing to stuff notes down someone's locker, but stealing someone's clothes so that your evil leader can get her revenge by flooding a toilet? Was this right?

Of course.

The girl crept slowly behind Rika, picking up a pair of jeans. These? The New York transfer student- Elicia or something- stepped on her head as Ayashi's minion slowly crawled on the floor.

"Er... Asuka?"

Asuka pretended that she wasn't there, and that she was invisible.

"Give me me pants back!" Asuka thought about random things, trying extremely hard to ignore her. _For a transfer student, her Japanese isn't that bad. The cement is a lovely color of gray. _Elicia looked down at Asuka, who was squeezing her eyes shut. "Asuka? Are you OK? In the head?" When Asuka didn't respond, she grabbed her pants, and walked away, complaining about crazy pants-stealers in Japan. Asuka crept on.

Eventually, several pairs of pants later, she found Rika's pants. Rika was mumbling and glaring at something while Jeri Katou was giggling hysterically at whatever. She took them, and laughed triumphantly, making up her own version of the Ayashi cackle. Rika turned around.

"Asuka! What do you think you're doing with _my pants_?" She glared at her and started to chase after her.

_Eep. Eep. Eep. _Asuka started to run, still waving Rika's pants like a flag. She rushed through people, knocking them down. Rika chased her, gaining on her second by second. From years of running after Ryo, Asuka was fast. Rika was faster. They burst out of the locker room, and onto the "pleasant porch", installed by the architects twelve feet off the ground, where students could "peacefully chat and admire the grounds from above." This was, of course, not what happened.

Rika and Asuka chased each other up and down the stairs and around the pleasant porch, until Asuka, blessed with incredible dumb luck and track skills, was cornered, balanced on the porch rail. Rika lunged for her pants, and just grabbed them, when Asuka jumped.

Asuka landed on her feet, a perfect landing. The bystanders applauded. Rika, who lunged for the once waving pants, had the pants- but was falling, almost headfirst in a dive to the hard cement. Ayashi smiled at Ryo, and stood completely in front of him, blocking his view from the falling Rika. She smiled wide, brushed off that stupid Kazu, and bubbled on about Ryo's "amazing 'athletic-ness'". He looked worried, and rushed. She planted herself in front of him, completely blocking him. _Why don't you hurry up and hit the ground, Nonaka?_

_Don't let me die now for these stupid pants, _Rika thought to herself. The cement was coming nearer and nearer, people were screaming. She was actually quite at peace with herself. _I wonder if I'll survive this? I wonder if my pants have a hole in them? _Someone was shouting her name. Who? She was falling now, and she panicked just before she was close to the cement, when suddenly, the cement stopped coming closer-

"Wildcat, you're not really a cat. So don't try it again. You won't land on your feet."

She glared up at him. "Drop me now, Akiyama."

He looked down at her. "I told you, call me Ryo!"

She glared. He sighed. "Don't waste the rest of your seven lives, wildcat." Then he winked at her. "I'm not always there to save you."

"Quit winking! I'm not Wildcat, it's RIKA."

"Pumpkin, do you have to be so stubborn all the time?"

"Why are you so arrogantly sure everyone likes you?"

"Why do you think everyone doesn't?"

They stared at each other, one smiling, one glaring.

The tension was very, very thick. The people watching weren't exactly sure what to do. Either Rika or Ryo, (probably, they thought, Rika,) was going to explode. They weren't exactly sure who was mad at who. Of course, Rika _looked _mad, but she had just been saved by Ryo. And Ryo was smiling, so was he mad?

"OK, listen up everone!" The tiny teacher shouted into the microphone. The confused, silent crowd of kids ignored her, whispering between themselves. She adjusted the microphone's volume and screamed into it.

"LISTEN!" They did.

She smiled calmly out at them. "Today," she chirped, "We are all going to do the Iron Shoe Run, our famous and beloved mile-long run, wearing our specially crafted iron shoes!" She held up a pair. "See?"

Everyone groaned. Every other year, a random class was selected to run the Iron Shoe, and this year it was them. The chirpy teacher smiled at them, and pointed at the shoe boxes. "Go and line up for your shoes everyone! Hustle! Hustle! Hustle!" People trudged towards the boxes, complaining.

Jeri looked worried. "Are the shoes really hard? I hope they don't hurt my feet..."

Ayashi, passing by looked at her. "Your feet, Katou, are too big- much too big for this kind of thing. You may be lucky- they don't make shoes in size Elephant." She snickered. Her minions giggled.

"That's hilarious-huhuh- Ayashi-you're a- huhuh-comic genius-huhuh,"

"Shut up, Asuka. You're not to call me Ayashi, just refer to me as Miss Fujiwara. And get rid of that _stupid _thing you call a giggle." She walked away, Asuka following her.

"Are my feet really that big?

Takato, wearing his iron shoes already, frowned. "Who told you that?" Takato had just joined Jeri and Rika. "They're small! And cute! Who told you they were big?"

Jeri blushed. "Ayashi..."

"She's stupid, just like her fanclub, and their "object of adoration." Ignore her." Rika laced on her iron shoes. They were surprisingly heavy. Jeri tried one of hers on and winced.

"These must be about 10 pounds!" She tried jogging in place and stopped. "Ow... I'm gonna kill my feet like this!"

"Let's go people! Go! Go! G! O! Let's go!" The chirpy PE teacher cheered. Groaning, the unlucky class started running down the track.

_Who would get the fastest time this year?_ Every year, the Iron Shoe Run's fastest runner was honored as the fastest student of the year, complete with yearbook pictures. _No doubt Ayashi's going to try and get it, _Rika thought to herself. Ayashi, though one of the worst runners in the school, adored having her photo taken. Rika kept running, forgetting the weight on her feet.

"Hey pumpkin!" Someone was talking in her ear, and getting really close to her. She jogged faster. That same person caught up with her. "C'mon, talk to me. You still mad? Or are you saving your breath for the run?"

Rika let herself look at Ryo. For some reason, her concentration was never the same after she looked at someone- even this blue-eyed rival of hers. "What."

"Tired yet?" _He looks so cheerful. And untired. How does he do it? _The iron shoes' weight were slowing her down. He looked like he was floating on air. He turned around and ran backwards, facing her, smiling.

"No."

"You know, you're making everyone look bad, Rika. Do you like doing that or is it just your adorable self?" He looked behind them. Yards away, people were running in their iron shoes, far from catching up. _Did I really run that fast?_

As if reading her thoughts, Ryo grinned. "You left everyone in the dust, wildcat. Trying to run away from someone?"

"You." Her feet hurt so much right now, and her hair was starting to come out of the hair tie.

"If you're blushing, it's OK to share your feelings, you know. I don't mind." He was hopping on one foot now. How did he do it? Rika just glared. They were nearing the end now.

"Wanna race?" He grinned wider, if that was possible. "I always win."

"Why don't you-" Before Rika finished the sentence, he was off running.

"Cheater!" She called after him, and took off running, trying to ignore the heavy iron shoes as she and Ryo took off, running through the track.

Cameras flashed. Ryo grinned. He had to have won- obviously. Then he looked at the other person, breathing heavily, beside him. Rika. That was great! She had made it too! He grinned at her, too exhausted to do anything else. That last part completely tired him out.

Cameras flashed. Rika, breathing hard, had won. At least that's what must have happened, because everyone was taking pictures of her looking like an idiot. She heard someone laugh right next to her. The photographer? It couldn't be. She turned her head, and there was Ryo Akiyama. Who won? He grinned at her? That meant he won? She won? Was he mad? Was _she _mad? Gone crazy?

The yearbook photographer smiled at them both. "Smile for the camera! You two were the fastest I've seen yet!" Her finger hovered over the camera button and clicked down hard.

And in the yearbook, the moment of tired, hyper Ryo Akiyama kissing an exhausted, glaring, Rika Nonaka on the cheek on that sunny day on the track was immortalized forever more.

**Reviewers of Chapter Four:**

**GTKari-123**-thanx so much! you're the first reviewer of chapter 4!

**Black-** The drama teacher, Yumi Sarawatari, twists the noses of her fellow teachers. She'd make people sign a contract.. I'll try not to use capitals and not be tacky.. Even though it's fun... Thank you! Glad you liked it!

**notyouraverageblond-** Thank you! I'll try hard to make Glass Slipper the best I can make it!

aNiMe-AzN-aNgEl-I liked the ending too.. glad you liked it!

**DigiChick( )**- you're the latest reviewer. You reviewed about 10 minutes before I posted this!

**Originally, this was going to end as a shorter piece, but then I looked at it, and it was much much too short. So you get what was going to be next chapter. And THEN, I wrote up another chapter, but my computer ate it... it was hungry and mad at me... If you think it's too much of whatever, too little whatever, tell me... I really need it! Comments, suggestions, and (of course) compliments always loved! liahime**


	6. 5 Slippers of Satin

1

Glass Slipper by liahime

5 Slippers of Satin:

The Lovely Disclaimer Proclaims: **Liahime doesn't own Digimon or Shakespeare at this moment. But she will. Buahahahahahahahaha!**

Currently, Rika was not speaking to Ryo at all.

At all.

Ever.

After the run on the Iron Shoe, she had felt.. Confused? Angry? She wasn't sure. She remembered being caught in his arms after falling, being kissed on the cheek after running, and where she expected to be angry, she just- wasn't. Of course, she had slapped him-hard. Punched him- much more than the necessary twice. But there was just a confused feeling when she thought of it, as if - impossible, really- she wasn't mad at him. As if she had... liked it. So while pondering this, standing in the drama room after school, Rika practiced her lines for the play.

Sarawatari-sensei was rambling on about "capturing the essence of Cinderella", about "being one with the spirit of Cinderella, and "for Shakespeare's sake, smile more, Rika." Ayashi gave a blinding grin.

_She wants drama. I'll give her drama. _Rika gritted her teeth. Constantly, the people wanted her to be better at this, better at that, and smile. Constantly out to catch her and point out what was wrong. She got prepared to overdo it so much, cheese would drip from it. She got the tears to come to her eyes, and said those dreaded words again, getting ready for the drama teacher to blow up.

"But Stepsister! Please! The ball _does _means so much to me!"

She hated those words. So stupid. When being somewhere so you could just "watch the prince" and sigh over "lost hopes and beautiful dreams." How pathetic.

Elicia, a transfer student from New York, was surprised. This was not the same Rika who had read her lines like this a few moments before the teacher had finished ranting.

"Butstepsister, pleasetheballmeanssomuchtome."

Ayashi sneered at Rika. "Pathetic girl. You can not truly hope to go the ball in those _ugly _rags you're wearing."

Rika waited for the drama teacher to start ranting. She didn't. She was applauding. Why didn't things go right? Elicia, the other stepsister, chimed in with Ayashi's sneer.

"Look, _Cinders, _you'd make _us, _your fantastically lovely and beautiful and heart-capturing sisters, look just _too _perfect in comparison. The prince might faint."

Rika grumbled under her breath. "I doubt it," looking at Ayashi.

The door slammed open again. Sarawatari-sensei sighed. With all the slamming, it was starting to fall off at the hinges. Yet another late drama student rushed in. _Kazu, _she thought. _What a surprise. _

Suprisingly, Ayashi didn't say a thing. She just smiled with the rest of the cast, and even waved at Kazu. "Hey, Shidoa-kun!"

_Shidoa-kun? _This raised a couple of eyebrows. What was Ayashi up to? Normally, she didn't even bother to say his name. Elicia continued the lines, looking up from her script to smile at Kazu as well.

"Farewell sister. Have fun at your royal ball with the mice. I heard the broom dances beautifully." Ayashi and Elica exited to their seats. Kazu, the prince's understudy, pulled Ayashi's hair, something that was unforgivable. He braced himself for a slap. Ayashi turned around and smiled. "Did you need something?"

_The world is falling apart, _thought Rika, as she had to pretend to cry. _First, I'm not mad at Ryo Akiyama. And Ayashi Fujiwara is smiling at Kazu. What's next?_

Jeri the fairy godmother floated from her chair into her place in the scene.

"There, there, darling, don't cry." She patted Rika's head gently. She leaned down to whisper to Rika.

"Guess what? Ayashi Fujiwara," she said, acting out the fairy godmother, "Ayashi Fujiwara has invited you, Alice, and me, to _her _karaoke party!" She raised her wand and continued acting. From the look that Alice gave them, it was clear that Jeri had already told her.

_And three, Ayashi Fujiwara has invited me to her karaoke party. _

_The world is falling apart._

Walking home from drama practice, Jeri looked over the invitation for the hundredth time. Getting an invitation from Ayashi, was the highschool equivalent to the Queen of England making you a Lord or Lady. You were welcomed into all society, by all people in general. Rika remained indifferent.

On scented paper, in perfect gel pen:

_Rika, Jeri, Alice!_

_Hi! This is Ayashi Fujiwara! And I decided that I really wanted to get to know you, so if you don't mind, could you come to my karaoke party on Friday night, starting at 8:00 PM? Please? I'm sure we'll be great friends. Everyone from the cast is coming- it's a drama party! And since you three are in main roles, you have to come! _

_Hope you'll be there,_

_Ayashi_

Rika laughed. "'Sure we'll be great friends?' I smell a rat. A blonde one."

Jeri frowned. "Don't be pessimistic, Rika, I'm sure she's nicer now."

"Hmph."

"Are you going to go?"

"No."

"I'm going."

"So."

"Alice is going."

"Does that mean I'm going?"

"Henry and Takato and Kazu and Kenta and Ryo and everyone in the drama cast are going." Jeri added.

"Fine."

"What?"

"Fine, I'll go."

"That's so great! C'mon, we need to find your clothes!"

"It's on Friday!"

"I know, so little time!"

"Friday as in three days!"

"That's only about 36 hours! 2160 minutes! 129600 seconds! No time at all! Now, do you think that you'd look best in white? Red? Blue?"

"_MY WORLD IS FALLING APART!" _Ayashi screamed at Asuka. Asuka, though expelled from school because of the "pants incident", was bribed back in by her rich stepfather with only one week of suspension. So, she was still in school as Ayashi's minion, her allowance gone forever. Asuka sat on the floor, painting Ayashi's toenails calmly.

"I can't believe it! That Ryo Akiyama, who was meant for _me, _KISSED Rika! KISSED! When he hasn't even eaten the chocolates I sent him! Or touched the cards! It's not fair, Asuka. The world is falling apart." She flopped back onto her huge bed, keeping her toes in place. The world can fall apart, but you should have a decent manicure if it does.

"Asuka, I want the shade a bit lighter. It'll look better. Add some glitter too." Ayashi paused for breath.

"I can't STAND to look at Rika now, ever! Or her perky friend with the puppet, or the gothic-clothes girl. I can't take this anymore! The magazine's counsel was RUBBISH!" She paused again. "No, Asuka, _lighter. _More glitter too."

"That stupid, stupid magazine! It said guys like Ryo like girls like me more when they're nice. Friendly to all. So I braved that horrible Shidoa. I sent those invitations to all of the drama-obsessed cast. I _quit _being nice. I will have revenge on that.. That.. Nonaka." Ayashi ranted.

"And I haven't heard a PEEP from Ryo-chan!"

"He asked you to call him Akiyama, didn't he?" Asuka looked up from toenail painting.

"It was _code, _Asuka. He _meant _that he was in love with me, just too shy to tell everyone. Honestly, you are so stupid." Ayashi walked off in a cloud of gardenia perfume and nail polish, leaving Asuka behind. "And Asuka, I need a line to my Ryo immediately."

Asuka sighed and started to clean up the drips of nail polish.

"This is Ryo," A tenor voice spoke into Ayashi's ear.

"Ryo, this is Ayashi-chan!" Ayashi sweetly giggled into the phone.

"Hi. How are you?" Ayashi squealed, thinking "_He is so sweet! So adorable! So caring! Perfect guy."_

"I'm doing horrible without you, Ryo-chan. Come over. I miss you." She giggled again.

"Really?"

"Of cours-"

Ryo interrupted her. "Well, I'm sorry I can't come to my phone right now, sorry about that.. Leave your name, your phone number, and a message after the beep. If you're still mad at me, Wildcat, you probably will track me down, so don't repeat yourself, darling. I miss you too. _Beep!"_

Ayashi's mouth dropped open.

REVIEWS

**unknown: **hi! Thank you! I'll write more ASAP.

**GTKari-123**: Thanks! I'll write more ASAP (in reason...)

**Black: **Thank you! I'll try to fix the stuff! (I am horrible with remembering stuff, so sometimes I just make it up so I don't have to look it up...;) The Tamers are around the contract age-limit age.. 16.. Thanks, I'll try to remember it all...

**DigiChick**: Sorry for getting your name/sn wrong.. I look at reviews through my e-mail, and they put it there... My e-mail and computer are teaming up against me. Thank you!

**Jenni: **Thank you for reviewing! I'm a bit sorry for Asuka too...

**violetaurora**- Thank you too! I'll write more soon!

**Sparkling-Ruby Gem: **Thank you! If you have any suggestions, please tell me!

**aNiMe-AzN-aNgEl**: thank you! Please review more!

**Thanks for reviewing everyone! I love getting reviews... My Yahoo Messenger has this huge (I don't know what it is) popping sound and it says "You have a new e-mail," and it's from I love it! I'm still relatively new, but I think that I'm always going to love getting reviews. Thank you everyone!**


	7. 6 Slippers of Song

1Glass Slipper by liahime

6 Slippers of Song

Disclaimer: Turn your thoughts upward, or if you live in Canada or above, downwards, to some wonderful American state filled with rain, coffee, and you just might hear someone-liahime maybe?-saying that she doesn't own Digimon, or the rest of the songs.

Jeri and Alice had eventually dragged Rika to Ayashi's huge house. It towered over the other houses in the wealthier district of the city, complete with the huge driveway that they were now walking up.

"Rika, take off your coat. You look fine."

Rika, hiding behind sunglasses and a huge coat, replied. "I look like an idiot."

Alice, completely in black, sighed. "Rika, you look good. Take off the coat. And the glasses. Now." When Rika didn't move, she frowned at her. "Rika. Rika. Rika. We spent about two hours on _you, _so you better take off that coat, or you're going to waste two hours... And you don't want to waste _two hours,_ do you?" Alice, to the average passerby, was being very friendly and cheerful. But if you looked closely, you could see the glint in her eye that matched Jeri's. They both were cheerfully terrifying, smiling at Rika.

Rika took off the coat.

At the door, the butler looked down his nose at the three girls. "Name?" The door flung open.

"Don't worry, these are friends, um.. Er.. Servant person." Ayashi hugged Jeri. "Jeri, you look great!" She turned to Alice. "You too, Alice." Then she looked at Rika. Their eyes locked in a silent glare for a moment, and then Ayashi smiled again and complimented Rika... but of course, didn't hug her. As they went inside, Ayashi kept giggling and smiling, acting surprisingly-nice?

"I hope we can-" she stopped when she saw Ryo, and then began again. "I HOPE WE'LL BE GREAT FRIENDS, YOU GUYS!", she shouted, with a glance at the staring Ryo. "I'M SURE THAT WE WILL!" She was looking at Ryo the entire time. "NOW, LETS GO HAVE A KARAOKE CONTEST!"

Throughout the party, Ayashi was nice. It was disconcerting, having her pop up behind you, offering you some food, some compliment, something kind or nice. While the rest of the people seemed not to notice this change, Rika felt like a mouse, waiting for the cat to stop playing with it's prey and pounce. Something didn't feel right.

Frenzied applause. Someone had gone up on the stage, the first contestant in the karaoke contest. Who was it? Oh. What a surprise. Ayashi.

But Ayashi wasn't singing, just announcing. She clapped with the rest of the people, applauding Jeri as she went up onto the stage. Nervously, she looked around the audience before she began. "Um.. I'm singing Breakaway, by Kelly Clarkson.." She started.

"Grew up in a small town

And when the rain would fall down

I'd just stare out my window

Dreamin' of what could be

And if I'd end up happy

I would pray"

Jeri had started nervously, and her voice trembled a bit, but went on.

"Trying hard to reach out

But when I tried to speak out

Felt like no one could hear me

Wanted to belong here

But something felt so wrong here

So I prayed I could break away

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly

I'll do what it takes till I touch the sky

And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change

And break away

Out of the darkness and into the sun

But I won't forget all the ones that I love

I'll take a risk, take a chance, make a change

And break away"

After the chorus, she started to gain confidence, really singing now.

"Wanna feel the warm breeze

Sleep under a palm tree

Feel the rush of the ocean

Get on board a fast train

Travel on a jetplane, far away

And break away

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly

I'll do what it takes till I touch the sky

And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change

And break away

Out of the darkness and into the sun

I won't forget all the ones that I love

I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change

And break away

Buildings with a hundred floors

Swinging round revolving doors

Maybe I don't know where they'll take me

But, gotta keep moving on, moving on

Fly away, break away

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly

Though it's not easy to tell you goodbye, gotta

Take a risk, take a chance, make a change

And break away

Out of the darkness and into the sun

But I won't forget of the place I come from

I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change

And break away

Breakaway

Breakaway"

The audience applauded. Suddenly, a spotlight settled on a huge screen behind Jeri, and two numbers flashed out. The computer read out "94 points!" A huge wave of computerized applause swept over the stage.

Ayashi came up. "Good job, Jeri! You got a good score!" She turned to the audience. "This machine judges your singing when you come up! Anyone want to try?"

People had gone off on and on the stage, getting scores that ranged from the off-key, off tune 21 to the low 90's. Jeri had been in the 90's. Kenta, was the 21 point scorer.

Then Ryo, who had been pushed by Takato, came up the stairs to the stage. He looked at Rika. "I'm Ryo."

The audience dutifully responded. "Hi, Ryo!"

"And I'm singing I'll Be, which I'm dedicating to one of the girls here tonight."

Ayashi and Asuka, sitting together at a table in the front, were being the example of the perfect hostess. But when Ryo had started to sing, Ayashi had grabbed the table in front, quickly cleared the food on it away, and she had squealed. She knew and loved this song, and her eyes were green. She sang a part of the song to herself. "Emeralds from mountains, thrust towards the sky." That girl had to be her. She now loved color contacts. Loved them. But then, listening for a while, her face worked it's way down into disbelief.

" The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful

Stop me and steal my breath"

Ryo took a breath and looked down at Rika again

"_Amethysts_, from the mountains thrust towards the sky

Never revealing their depth"

Ayashi's disbelief slid down to anger. Rika, however, was staring at him, wondering. _Why this song? Why did he change it to amethysts? And who's this mystery girl he's dedicating this too? _Having never heard the song before, she was confused. She shot a questioning look at Ryo. He just smiled and kept singing.

"Tell me that we belong together

Dress it up, with the trappings of love

I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips

Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above

And I'll be your cryin' shoulder

I'll be love suicide

I'll be better when I'm older

I'll be the greatest fan of your life

And rain falls angry on the tin roof

As we lie awake in my bed

You're my survival, you're my living proof

My love is alive and not dead

And tell me that we belong together

Dress it up, with the trappings of love

I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips

Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above

And I'll be your cryin' shoulder

I'll be love suicide

I'll be better when I'm older

I'll be the greatest fan of your life

And I've dropped out, I've burned up

I fought my way back from the dead

I tuned in, turned on

Remembered the things that you said"

Rika would have loved the song- she wasn't sure why, she just liked it- if Ryo wasn't looking down at her. Or did that make it better?

"I'll be your cryin' shoulder

I'll be love suicide

I'll be better when I'm older

I'll be the greatest fan of your-"

Rika had the oddest feeling that the song was dedicated to her, without any proof. She just had this feeling... Was it? She kept looking at Ryo, trying to tell. Surely, it was for some other girl

"Well, I'll be your cryin' shoulder

I'll be love suicide

I'll be better when I'm older

I'll be the greatest fan of your life

The greatest fan of your life

The greatest fan of your life"

The fangirls' applause was almost deafening. Each one of them was sure that it was dedicated to them, and they screamed. "I'll go out with you, yes, yes, yes, Ryo!"

"I do!"

"My eyes aren't green..." wondered one of the fangirls.

Ayashi swept onto the stage. "Now, we're going to have a showdown, between two random people that the computer picks. Everyone, stay still for a while!" She was angry, VERY angry, and was getting ready to show off. She needed to.

The flashing spotlights settled on Ayashi. Big surprise. The other one, kept searching, searching, until it landed on a redheaded girl that was really hoping not to be picked.

"C'mon, Rika! Come on up!" The entire crowd was calling for her to go up, pushing her forwards, to the stage. She stopped at Ryo.

"You sure you want to do this, wildcat?"

A moment of decision. Rika made it. "Yeah."

"Scared of Ayashi?"

"Who wouldn't be?" Rika walked up the stage, leaving Ryo laughing below.

Ayashi, the computer had decided, would go first. She sang "Toxic", and surprisingly had a really good singing voice. She sang really well- just like the CD!-and Rika, who was absolutely dreading singing up on stage, tried to sneak out of it.

Jeri caught her. "Rika, I picked the song for you, OK? Just sing the words on the screen." Onstage, Ayashi had gotten a high score- 98. Everyone applauded, unamazed. Ayashi, singing a 98 on the karaoke machine. She had actually been really good, so no one doubted the score.

Nervously, Rika went up on the stage, and without announcing the song, just a glare at Jeri and at Ryo, she started to sing.

"I had no choice but to hear you

You stated your case time and again

I thought about it

You treat me like I´m a princess

I´m not used to liking that

You ask how my day was

You´ve already won me over in spite of me

Don´t be alarmed if I fall head over feet

Don´t be surprised if I love you for all that you are

I couldn´t help it

It´s all your fault"

Was this Rika? Surprisingly, she too had a beautiful voice. With Ayashi, it hadn't been that much of a surprise- with the money she had, she could take the most expensive singing tutor there was- but Rika? Ice queen Rika? From Rika, it seemed like the voice of an angel. _A really pretty angel, _thought Ryo.

"Your love is thick and it swallowed me whole

You´re so much braver than I gave you credit for

That´s not lip service

You´ve already won me over in spite of me

Don´t be alarmed if I fall head over feet

Don´t be surprised if I love you for all that you are

I couldn´t help it

It´s all your fault"

Ryo couldn't help grinning.. Somehow, this reminded him of life, as if the song was made for Rika. Near him, Jeri was smiling too. She had picked the perfect song. It fit Rika and Ryo perfectly. Now, if only they would take the hint...

"You are the bearer of unconditional things

You held your breath and the door for me

Thanks for your patience

You´re the best listener that I´ve ever met

You´re my best friend

Best friend with benefits

What took me so long

I´ve never felt this healthy before

I´ve never wanted something rational

I am aware now

I am aware now

You´ve already won me over in spite of me

Don´t be alarmed if I fall head over feet

Don´t be surprised if I love you for all that you are

I couldn´t help it

It´s all your fault."

The machine whirred, and the score came out. "99!" Huge applause. Rika quickly exited the stage, while her audience was amazed. The ice queen, had beaten the cheerleading captain-queen, in karaoke? Who would have guessed? It was a surprise! But they all agreed- Rika had a beautiful voice.

"Did you dedicate the song to someone, Rika?" Jeri elbowed her and gave a meaningful glance to Ryo.

"I didn't know the song. How could I have done a dedication?"

"Still..."

Ayashi came up to Rika. "Hey! Good job! You sing beautifully!" She squirmed under Rika's stare, looking at her if she knew completely every plan that had gone into her head. "You must be thirsty. Have some punch!" She handed her a glass, and ran away.

"Ok..." Rika took a sip of the punch, and waited. She wasn't dead yet, and it wasn't filled with any disgusting thing. Had Ayashi become reformed? She took another, larger, sip. This was good! It had some strange, new flavor, and she drained the huge glass.

The table shook. Rika went and lurched on to it, moving as if the floor was rolling in waves. She giggled. Rika, never, ever, giggled. She lurched again.

"Rika, are you OK?" Her friends gathered around her.

She giggled again. "Yeah, I'm fine. Is there any more punch left?" She slurred the words, and almost collapsed on the table. "Ow." She giggled some more.

Henry sniffed the cup. "What!" They all looked at him.

"This cup- smell it- it has alcohol in it! A lot. It smells like someone poured most of the bottle into it, too. But who would do that?"

Jeri looked worried. "Lets see. She didn't get anything at first. And then someone came who was it? Oh! Ayashi!" She looked at the cup. "But Ayashi is nice now? Why would she do that?" They looked at Rika, who had fallen asleep on the table, and then at Ayashi, who looked smug as she smiled at Rika. She came over.

"Oh, the poor dear. She must be sick." Smugness dripped off her voice.

Henry looked at Ayashi. "No, she's fine. She'll just have a hangover when she wakes up tomorrow. Any idea who could have done that?"

"No idea, Henry!" Ayashi looked offended. "She's just sick." She reached over to pat Rika's head. Rika rolled her head to the side, leaving Ayashi patting the table. Ryo looked at Ayashi, and then at Rika. He gave Ayashi a glare that was worthy of Rika.

"Don't touch her, Fujiwara." He picked Rika up gently, making sure her head was safe. "We have to go now. Wonderful party." He was still glaring. Ayashi was nervous. This didn't happen, did it?

"But.. But.. Ryo! Why are you glaring at me?" He looked genuinely angry.

"I told you, Ayashi. Call me Akiyama. Not Ryo."

After telling everyone he was leaving, and getting rid of anxious friends, telling them to "just stay and have a good time! Really!" Ryo had gotten through the door, with the unconscious Rika. He walked to her house, carrying her each step of the way. Her head nestled into his chest, trying to get more comfortable. Ryo smiled. The wildcat really was more peaceful asleep. In reality, this- just carrying her, alone- was pretty much impossible. But then, here on this starry night, walking home with Rika in his arms- reality must have taken a break for a while. The stars shone brightly onto Rika's face, giving her face a glow in the darkness.

They got to Rika's house, and Ryo had the difficult challenge of ringing the doorbell, without dropping Rika. This was a challenge. Eventually, he rang the bell with his foot.

Rumiko answered the door. "Oh. Oh!" She looked at Ryo. "And you are?"

"Ryo Akiyama. I go to Rika's school, and today, someone gave her spiked punch... So she ended up like this. I just brought her home."

Rumiko smiled. Her daughter was a natural at this! Getting a boy to carry her home... Or was she really drunk? "Come inside. Here, you can set her in her room. It's this way.." She pointed down the hall. "That door. I'll open it for you. Thank you so much for bringing Rika home!" She looked closely at Ryo. "Are you her boyfriend? I always _knew _she had one!"

Ryo looked embarrassed. "No.. I'm not.. Just a friend, really."

"OK, set her down here."

Ryo started to leave. "I really should get back now..."

"No, no it's late. I'll give you a ride-" Rumiko remembered that she had been temporarily suspended from the car after going the wrong way in a one-way lane. It wasn't her fault.. She had been driving home rushed, coming from an exhausting photo shoot. "Actually.. Why don't you stay here tonight! Someone can drive you home in the morning. You can sleep in the living room." Rumiko hoped that her mother- and her mother's car- would come back soon from the monthly "bingo/poker" club.. She went and got some blankets for Ryo, who was calling his dad.

_Oh my, _she thought. _A night out at a party with Ayashi Fujiwara, and her boyfriend carrying her home... She is going to be so delighted when she wakes up! Lucky girl..._

**Reviewers:**

**aNiMe-AzN-aNgEl-** He had an answering machine message like that.. happy Ayashi-bashing! It's fun to do.. I did it all through this chapter..

**Sparkling-Ruby-Gem-**Thank you for the lyrics! I was going to use them, and then I decided to use the other song I used here, because it seemed more karaoke-ish. Thank you though!

**Kay-** Thanks for reviewing! I'll update more after Spring Break! Yay! Thank you!

**MoonPrincess3-** Thank you! It was fun to write..

**Lil' Lilo-** Thank you! Hope you liked this chapter!

**cheriberigurl**-There's going to be much more Ryuki in these next chapter! Please keep reading!

**KuTiexAzNxAnGeL**-Thank you!

**GTKari-123-** Thank you! I'm trying to make my chapters unconfusing... The last one kind of was. Anyways, hope you liked this chapter.

**violetaurora- **By 'wildcat' at the end, he meant Rika.. He calls Rika wildcat a lot.. And Rika would probably track him down and kill him after what he did in chapter 4 after the Iron Shoe run.. Hope you like this chapter too!

**midnight-mystic-dragon- **Please review more then! Thank you! Hope you like what's coming next!

**DigiChick-** Ok! I hope you like this chapter! Thank you!

**Hi everyone! I wrote this chapter this morning- finally..- so I could get it done before spring break! I love spring break.. Summer break too.. Winter break... I wish spring break was longer though... It would be more fun. I'm going somewhere FAR away from my computer- no, not my kitchen..- and won't update for a while.. I'm not going to start typing for at least a week... Thank you for reviewing, everyone! Please review lots while I'm gone! Have a great spring break! **

**liahime**


	8. 7 Slippers of Shattering

Glass Slipper by liahime

7 Slippers of Shattering

Disclaimer that liahime forgot to do, and put in at the very very last second: I don't own Digimon at all.

Rika woke up with an immense pounding in her head that wouldn't go away. It kept bouncing through her head, making her feel dizzy. Her stomach was angry at her- it was turning and twisting and tying itself into a knot. What had happened? All she remembered was being at Ayashi's karaoke party, singing... She drank some punch, but that was all... I t's not like she had a hangover, did she? Why did her head hurt so much?

Downstairs, Ryo woke up with a huge cramp in his neck, feeling slightly irritated after sleeping on a tiny sofa all night. He felt a lot like a clown that had squeezed itself into a tiny car once too often. He sat up, knocking over a glass lamp with his feet.

Rika knew she must have somehow gotten home from the party, but her brain was too fuzzy to remember why. Someone was screaming in her head She remembered someone carrying her, the feeling of being safe and warm in someone's arms... But that couldn't have happened, could it? She stumbled out of bed.

The lamp fell, almost in slow motion. It hit the floor, and didn't shatter. Ryo breathed out. _Thank you for carpets. _He picked up the lamp. It was perfectly fine- except for a huge crack in the side of the glass. He gently set it back in it's former home, turning it so no one would notice. _Where am I? _Ryo thought. _Glass lamps, sofa... _His eyes fell on a picture of Rika, immortalized as a six year old girl in the photo. Oh. He remembered now. He had just cracked her lamp, slept at her house... Oops...

Rika walked into some room, eyes still half closed. She needed to yell at someone. A lot. Her head was splitting apart right now, shattering itself over and over again.

Oops didn't work. It was past "Oh my..." and "Oh dear.." Rika slowly walked into the living room, her eyes still closed. She looked very tired. Very angry.

Rika opened her eyes slowly. Which room was she in?

Ryo decided that he should edge slowly away.

Rika opened her eyes, and saw Akiyama Ryo, for some strange reason, in her house. The screaming in her head crescendoed as her headache grew. She was tired, her head was torturing her, she felt like she had eaten poison... And there was Akiyama Ryo, looking at her with something like pity and disgust?

Rika opened her mouth, and exploded.

She wasn't really even mad at him, she was just mad at the world in general, and her entire body was killing her right now, for something she didn't even really remember. Whatever came into her head, she screamed at him. She needed to vent her anger, and he was the perfect target.

Ryo Akiyama, however patient he was, was not a saint. He too was tired, his neck felt cracked. Rika was screaming at him. Whatever patience he had left snapped after she had started screaming. She was always angry at him, so self-centered in that way, never thinking about how anyone else felt. Why couldn't she act a little nicer sometimes?

And then he looked at Rika, who looked... shocked. He had just said that out loud. He felt sorry, but it was true. He was mad at Rika. For the first time, Ryo Akiyama had actually snapped back at Rika. She looked like a little girl, who had just gotten yelled at for the first time for a moment, and if she had stayed like that... But she didn't. Her face hardened again, and he stayed angry.

She would have screamed back, but Ryo, still angry, walked out the door, slamming it as he left.

The glass lamp wobbled and fell to the ground, shattering into tiny pieces. And Rika, expecting to feel anger, was left only with the sorrow and pain, shards of glass at her feet.

At school, the world was in a hyper buzz, flowing off Rika like a stream around a solitary rock.

"Did you hear?"

"Yeah! Can you believe it?"

"Oh my gosh! I can't believe she did that!"

Rika, slowly walked towards her first class. Jeri ran up to her. "Did you hear? About Ayashi's karaoke party?"

Rika stayed silent. Jeri took the silence as amazement, and continued. "She used a CD and LIP-SYNCED the song! No wonder she was so good!"

"OK."

"Don't you care? I mean, you beat the CD! You must have a really good voice!" When Rika didn't say a thing, Jeri looked closer at Rika.

Rika's eyes were tired. _Makes sense, _Jeri thought, _After the party and all... _But Rika's eyes seemed different somehow... Almost sad in a way. "Rika? Are you alright?"

No answer.

Ryo rushed by, without stopping to talk as he normally would have done. Jeri looked at Ryo and then back at Rika. She asked, more gently. "Rika? Did something happen?"

"I'm fine. Perfectly fine."

In drama class, Ayashi sat in her chair, wearing sunglasses and white, the color of innocence. Asuka sat next to her. "Miss Ayash- I mean Fujiwara, oops, sorry!- is unavailable for comment. She's not guilty though."

Rika went through the play, always avoiding looking at Ryo. "MORE EMOTION! YOU ARE IN LOVE WITH THE PRINCE!" screamed the drama teacher. "BE HAPPY!"

Rika smiled, teeth clenched. _Love is happy, huh? Then this must not be it. _She stiffly played through the parts where she was "happy". Dancing, talking- anything with Ryo in it was as if a huge wall of ice separated them.

Jeri, as fairy godmother, murmured softly. "Poor girl.." She whispered to Rika. "Are you all right? Did something happen?"

Through fake sobs, Rika whispered back. "No."

"Not even after he carried you home? What happened? Tell me, please?"

This time the fake sobs had real tears. "Nothing at all, Jeri. Nothing. At all."

Jeri must have whispered something to Ryo as well, because in a run-through of one of the scenes, he asked Rika too. "Rika?"

Rika ignored him. She was mad, she was sad, and completely too tired and mixed up to say a thing. He left her alone. Rika blinked back tears, and they waltzed on through the drama room stage.

Rika was runinng home from drama practice through the park. Her headache was long gone, but she still felt hurt somehow. Of course it wasn't Ryo. So what if he had yelled at her? It's not like she cared, did she? She kept running down the street, thinking. It's not like she cared that he was mad at her, was she? Because if she cared, that means that she would like him. Like like him. And she didn't. Did she?

_The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful _

_Stop me and steal my breath _

_Amethysts from mountains thrust towards the sky _

_Never revealing their depth _

The song he had sang at the karaoke party confused her as well. _It's not like he likes me _

_anyways, does he? He probably hates me. After all, I'm the angry self-centered girl, right? _A voice in her head answered her. _Then why was he looking at you? _She

She heard his voice echo in her head. "Rika!" She kept running, as if she could out run her memories. Running, runing.. Never stopping. Maybe if she ran fast enough she could run out of her head, out of the sadness and the questions and confusion. Strangely, the voice was fading. She ran faster.

_Tell me that we belong together _

_Dress it up, with the trappings of love _

_I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips _

_Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above _

But did she? The voice was fading, but the questions kept coming. Did she like him as more than just a friend? More than a rival, more than a close friend... But as something more. Did she... love him? She kept running. _It can't be love, can it? Love i_s happy_, where you're in some completely impossible stupid fairytale. Impossible. Impossible._

She kept running. His voice was coming louder now, as if he really was calling out to her. "Rika! Stop! Wait!" She ran faster. _And if I loved him, I'd stop, wouldn't I? Stop and do whatever people in love do. _She was almost through the park now, getting closer to one of the main roads. Keep running

._And I'll be your cryin' shoulder_

_I'll be love suicide _

_I'll be better when I'm older _

_I'll be the greatest fan of your life _

The song tormented her, going on and on. She kept running hard, trying to run out of her life, out of her confusion... and away.

_I'll be your cryin' shoulder _

_I'll be love suicide-_

Tears were popping into her eyes. It must be her memory, the voice kept getting louder. _It's not love. It's just.. It's just.. Something. Something confusing and weird. A disease that affects people, makes them confused, makes them get tears in their eyes. _She was almost completely out of the park, and the voice kept asking her to wait up, it needed to talk to her. She squeezed her eyes shut and burst out into the main road. _I am not in love with Akiyama Ryo, _she told herself. _I am completely immune. Immune to his smile, immune to his laugh, immune to his eyes. I don't care about him at all. _

Horns were honking, and the voice was screaming her name. She opened her eyes. Horns? Horns? What were horns doing in her mind? She looked up. A blinding white light flashed from lightbulbs... Headlights? Horns? It was rushing towards her, and all she could think about was what it was. Lights, horns.. A car! Cursing her stupidity, Rika started to run. The car was getting closer and closer, the lights were coming closer. She could hear brakes screeching and the car sliding, and when she knew she wouldn't make it-

Someone flew into the car's path, throwing her out of the way. This wasn't supposed to happen... She fell with a thud onto the sidewalk on the other side. But who?

_And I'll be your cryin' shoulder _

_I'll be love suicide _

_I'll be better when I'm older _

_I'll be the greatest fan of your life _

_And I'll be your cryin' shoulder _

_I'll be love suicide _-

Rika looked up. In front of her, she saw the body of Ryo Akiyama in front of the car, where it had pushed her out of the way. The car came closer to him, closer, and closer.

Rika dropped whatever denial she had. She screamed.

**Reviews:**

**Luzr-Gur13**- Thank you for the idea! Was this enough action?

**Crazy Fool- **Thank you very much too!

**sk8ergurl12193- **thank you for caring about my fingers! (I play piano, so my fingers hurt more often than normal now..)

**Cat2fat900-**- Thank you! Sorry for the wait!

**Lil' Lilo: **I like Breakaway too! Hope you like this chapter!

**cheriberigurl- **Thank you lots!

**lady-snow-** Thanx very much! I'm glad you liked the song choice

**Numbuh half way hell- **Thank you! Sorry to make you wait more than a week!

**violetaurora: **Rika sang Head Over Feet, by Alanis Morissette (I think..) Thank you!

**GTKari-123- **Hope you get warmer weather soon! Thank you!

**Kay- **Thank you! Hope you also had a great break!

**aNiMe-AzN-aNgEl- **thanx lots and lots!

**DigiChick-**That chapter was very fun to write! Thank you!

**Sparkling-Ruby-Gem- **Thank you! I liked that part too!

THE AUTHOR NOTE:

**Did you like it? I hope you do! Liahime got this idea very randomly, and cuz she had writer's block (EXTREMELY SEVERE! ) she used this! I got the idea from Luzr-Gurl13, who started me in the right path.. She wanted more "action"(Thanx by the way!) (If you're going to get mad at me, don't! Please! Remember, everyone acts OOC when they are extremely tired/hangover whatever..) Lately, I've been lazy, reading Naruto online... ; Especially over the weekend... so I haven't updated anything for a while. Thank you to everyone who waited so patiently for me to stop (being lazy and...) having writer's block! Thank you! Review and tell me what you think! liahime**


	9. 8 Slippers of Memories

Glass Slipper by liahime

Disclaimer: liahime doesn't own Digimon. If in doubt, please see previous chapters, all stating the obvious stuff. If I owned Digimon, there'd be no word disclaimer here.

8 Slippers of Memories

_Am I dead? It's so bright... Thousands of tiny lights..._

_If I was dead, it wouldn't hurt this much, though. My arm feels like it's on fire. _

_Is that my blood? That can't be my blood. There's too much of it..._

_Wildcat, why are you screaming? I'm not dead..._

_just dying.  
_

"RYO!" Was he dead? He could not be dead. He couldn't be dead. Ryo Akiyama, one of the constants in life, was not dead. Yet there was his body, lying limp on the road, with a puddle of blood - that couldn't be his blood. She ran toward him.

The driver of the car rushed toward her. "Is he OK?"

Rika turned on him. "Does he _look_ OK? He got hit by your car! Do you actually think he's so perfect that he'll stand back up after getting practically run over by a car to save me? CALL A HOSPITAL, NOW!" She was kneeling next to Ryo, tears running down her face. "Did you hear me? CALL A HOSPITAL!" The frightened driver ran away, frantically pushing the buttons on his cell phone.

"Rika..." There was a long pause as Ryo shifted his arm. "I think you scared that guy." He winced as he tried to move his arm up.

"Don't move. You're going to be fine, OK? An ambulance is coming, and then you'll get your arm fixed." Rika was babbling. "Ryo, you can't die. Don't die. I am going to kill you personally if you die, Ryo Akiyama." Tears streamed down her face. "Don't die." Sirens wailed in the distance, their mourning cry screaming.

Ryo faintly whispered something.

"Rika... gomen..." The sirens were getting closer, the red and white lights were flashing through the trees, frantically rushing.

"Gomen nasai..." Would they get here too late? He was fading away, dying before Rika's eyes. He closed his eyes.

"Wildcat... I never meant... to make you cry."

The emergency room light had been on for a long time. Was Ryo dead? Were they afraid to tell her? Rika sat in the waiting room, flipping through a magazine. She looked at the 'Featured Picture', some photographer who specialized in couple shots. Two people ran after each other, the girl chasing the guy, caught in an eternal golden light. And yet, something about it was oddly familiar. She looked closer. It was her. It was Ryo.

_They ran through the streets, chasing each other. A photographer stopped walking down the quiet street and smiled at them, grabbing her camera. She snapped two instant photos and ran over to them._

"_Here. You two are such a cute couple! It's free of course. I specialize in couple-shots. Call me if you want a shoot!" Then the photographer had bounded away._

What had happened to that photo? Ryo had them at first, but then... She looked at the photo. If she could just go back to that moment, when things were simple as that day- just running, chasing him in that golden sunlight for her bag... She looked at her bag, dragged in the mud and oil of the street, with tiny drops of dried blood. Ryo's blood. Her stomach twisted, and she was nervous again. The operating light stayed on, glaring with a harsh white glow.

_He bowed, and with a flourish he presented Rika her bag. "My princess, Cinderella."_

_She grabbed the bag from his hands._

"_Ah, the princess is such an icy queen to serve."_

She picked it up, and opened it, preparing to stuff the magazine in nit, hiding the photo from the future guests of the waiting room. A piece of paper fluttered to the floor, and under her chair. She knelt down to pick it up.

It was the photo. He had put it in her bag that day, while she was distracted. A tear dropped down onto the photo, blurrring it. A solitary tear ran down her cheek. She clenched her eyes shut, determined not to cry. She wiped the tear roughly off her cheek. And fell into memory...

_She had burst past the finish line, feet aching, pressed by the hard metal shoes. She had won. She heard someone laugh right next to her. The photographer? It couldn't be. She turned her head, and there was Ryo Akiyama. Who won? He grinned at her? That meant he won? She won? Was he mad? Was she mad? Gone crazy?_

_There was a flash of a camera as she stood there, breathing hard, exhausted. She had turned away from that perfect, never tired smile to shield her face from the camera, when Akiyama Ryo turned, and kissed her on the cheek._

She felt the tears rising, and tilted her head back, face pale in the florescent lights. They burned, hot and wet in her eyes, but didn't come out. Good.

Why had he jumped? Why had he followed her? _Stupid. Stupid perfect hero-boy, saving the day, never thinking about how the people left behind feel. Stupid. _He had followed her, she knew for sure- the voice she heard in her head was him, mixed in with his singing. If she had just stopped when she had heard him, instead of running away. She hit her head against the wall behind her. _Stupid. Completely stupid. _The secretary, bored from sitting on the desk, turned up the volume on her radio. A tinny announcer's voice, blurred by a little static announced the song.

_The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful _

_Stop me and steal my breath _

_Emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky_

_Never revealing their depth _

The secretary sang along with the song, off tune and softly, pretending her pen was a microphone.

" _Tell me that we belong together _

_Dress it up, with the trappings of love _

_I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips _

_Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above"_

Rika's memories were evil, she was sure of it now. Every memory of Ryo was flashing in front of her eyes.

"_And what if they don't WANT to go away, Ayashi?" Half the girls started to swoon, most of them began to blush. He normally had that effect on people. Ryo Akiyama, the "Digimon King" of the school, continued. "Rika, you ok?" _

"I'm FINE."

He ignored her glare. "Great to hear it pumpkin. Jeri, you ok?" She nodded. "Then my work here is done." He paused. "Oh, and wild cat?" Rika looked at him.

"Congrats on getting the part."

She wasn't going to cry. Completely never going to cry. Tears were rising up again, but she kept them in.

_-Ryo was apparently not listening, just looking at one of the trees._

"_Akiyama."_

"_This isn't funny."_

"_Augh."_

"_RYO."_

_He looked up. "Hm?"_

"_Fine. I'll call you.." she paused and sighed. "Ryo."_

_He grinned triumphantly. "See you tomorrow, Wildcat!"-_

Wildcat. She hated that nickname. Or did she? She really didn't hate it at all. Maybe in the first place, a little... But now? 'Wildcat' was in her life now, in almost every memory she had. Smiling, pain, tears and all. Along with a smiling Akiyama Ryo...

_-was falling now, and she panicked just before she was close to the cement, when suddenly, the cement stopped coming closer-_

"_Wildcat, you're not really a cat. So don't try it again. You won't land on your feet."_

_She glared up at him. "Drop me now, Akiyama."_

_He looked down at her. "I told you, call me Ryo!"_

_She glared. He sighed. "Don't waste the rest of your seven lives, wildcat." Then he winked at her. "I'm not always there to save you- _

Akiyama Ryo, always there... When she needed him there, when she didn't, whenever and wherever- he had been there. Even when she was angry enough to scream at him for hours, he was patiently waiting-

_Rika opened her mouth, and exploded. _

_She wasn't really even mad at him, she was just mad at the world in general, and her entire body was killing her right now, for something she didn't even really remember. Whatever came into her head, she screamed at him. She needed to vent her anger, and he was the perfect target._

_Ryo Akiyama, however patient he was, was not a saint. He too was tired, his neck felt cracked. Rika was screaming at him. Whatever patience he had left snapped after she had started screaming. She was always angry at him, so self-centered in that way, never thinking about how anyone else felt. Why couldn't she act a little nicer sometimes? _

_Shards of glass, shattered, falling to the floor..._

And one day, Ryo had shouted. And she realized what he had done- been a human verbal punching bag, letting her pour whatever emotion she had out. And why? He had saved her, angry as he must have been before, jumping in front of the car, catching her from falling to cement. Ryo... Tears were blurring her vision.

"_Don't waste the rest of your seven lives, wildcat." Then he winked at her. "I'm not always there to save you- _

His last words to her echoed in her head.

"_Rika... gomen.."_

"_Gomen nasai..._" She could still feel the cement road under her knees, see the blood pooling up.

"_Wildcat... I never meant to make you cry.."_

Then the tears came.

The doctor slowly came into the waiting room, early in the morning. "Young lady..." He looked exhausted. "Young lady, you're an extremely lucky human being to have someone make such a huge sacrifice for you. I'm sorry to tell you that-"

Rika drew in her breath, ready for the worst.

"You will not be able to apply for jobs concerning traffic or the automobile industry for the next three years." Rika let out her breath, and started to laugh. The doctor, taking her laughing as a hysterics, patting her gently on the back. "There, there, you'll be fine. Just be more careful now, OK? You can go up and see your boyfriend now." And for once, Rika didn't contradict him. Running up two flights of stairs, Rika burst into the hospital room.

The doctor was right behind her. "He's not going to be able to do much right now... And he'll have one nasty scar on his face when this is over. His leg is sprained, his arm is in a cast-"

The 'young lady' had fallen asleep during his medical explanation, her flame colored hair falling around her as she slept, head on mattress, tears gently fading in the light. The boy, scar freshly healing, slept on, unconsciously moving his body for her head. His arm twisted slightly as he moved. He frowned in his sleep from the pain, but stayed in his position.

She murmured in her sleep. "Thank you... Ryo."

The doctor walked out of the room, eyes smiling. He stopped the nurse at the door. Some moments were designed for two people alone.

**REVIEWS:**

retasu: - you get to wait the least. I got your review the day I finished!

Kari Minamoto: glad you liked this!

DigiChick: not less than a day, but about.. - so glad you liked the end of the previous chapter!

aNiMeAzNaNgEl: See! I saved Ryo... he just has a broken arm, a sprained leg, etc.. but he's not dead! ;.. I couldn't kill him, but he got hit by a car, so...

Luzr-Gurl13: Yay! Glad you liked it too! Might use your suggestion.. Thank you!

Lil' Lilo: thanks to DigiChick and her wonderful cookie bribe, I worked on this much more than I should.

sk8tergurl12193: Ryo sang _I'll Be _by.. I forgot. Thank you!

My Dream's Shadow: Thank you! Glad you liked it!

Rachel: Everyone's saying OMG a lot.. I was saying it when I was writing it. Thank you!

GTKari-123: Yay Thank you! You have snow? TT I want snow.. We just get lovely cold and miserable rain and fog and hail...

violetaurora : Ok! Thanx! I will try to make things less confusing.

Sparkling-Ruby Gem: Thanx for reviewing! Aren't you glad I didn't kill him?

shadowcat: I started this a LONG time ago, and then I forgot about it... and then I got internet access, so I started again. Glad you like it!

SSJ-Vegito: I'll take that as a compliment... Glad you liked it (even if not at first...)Thank you!

**Authoress Note:**

**Dearest most wonderful people.. **

**I'm glad you liked the last chapter! I now have a weird habit of getting the ideas for the next chapter at really inconvenient times... like during my science test or in the car to the airport... I wrote the outline for the rest of the story by flashlight pen last night. I was completely stuck on this though! (Personally, not that good, I think..) I mightrewrite this one.. Review and tell me what you think, please! - I hope you like it though... >**

**This is added later... liahime's been sick (huge huge headache-sorta-fever thing...) so she's really sorry she hasn't updated for as soon as she wanted to...**

**worry worry worry about this chapter... liahime**


	10. 9 Slippers of Roses

Glass Slipper by liahime

9 Slippers of Roses

Disclaimer: I solemnly swear that I, liahime, do not own Digimon, and never have.

The hospital room door swung open, and Rika sat up, startled. How long had she been there?

Was this even the same hospital room? The bed was completely surrounded by roses. Sunlight streamed in from the open window. Who had sent these? She looked at the card on one.

Dear Darling Darling Ryo!

This is Ayashi-chan! I miss you very much! While you were gone, I was so brave! I didn't cry a bit, so that my makeup would stay perfect for you. Aren't you proud? I hope you get better really soon!

Rika set down the card. The entire thing was covered with- what else- pink gel pen hearts and even pinker writing. Attached to the card was a bouquet of huge scarlet red roses. The card continued.

Since one red rose means "I love You," I sent you 36!

The florist had left an ad on the huge bouquet. Rika stood up, and read it.

"Deep pink says thank you, dark red means unconscious beauty, and yellow indicates joy? Who remembers all of this?" Apparently the fangirls. In vases all over the hospital room, were red roses. The florist card read _"Red Roses symbolize sincere Love, Respect, Courage & Passion". _

There was a banging on the door. Ryo turned over and groaned. "Five minutes...please? I'm having a perfect dream..."

The door kept banging. Rika wondered if she should open it. A high pitched scream came from the other side. "RYO-CHAN!"

Ryo mumbled something with his face in the pillow. She wasn't sure, but it sounded like "and it just was ruined..." He sat up and yawned. His eyesight blurred, and then focused on a disgusted looking girl with flame colored hair. "Rika?"

She set down the florist's ad. "Ryo." _The car must not have hit his face. The fangirls are going to be overjoyed. _Except for a tiny cut and his casts, he looked almost exactly the same. He was smiling at her, smiling the perfect and patented Akiyama Ryo grin. He had gone through getting _hit by a car, _and somehow, grinning. His ocean blue eyes were smiling at her too. _Endless ocean blue... _She stopped herself. _This stupid person has been through a car crash, and you are turning stupid with him._

"So, Rika. What's up?"

Rika raised an eyebrow. "You know what, Akiyama Ryo? This is what's up. You just jumped in front of a car to save me, went through emergency room care, and are sitting in a hospital right now. And you say, what's up?" _There. I did it. Now _stop _looking at his eyes. Look at something else. His nose. His ear._

"Were you worried about me, wildcat?" He was laughing. "Completely full of trauma and out of your normal adorable personality."

"You're doing these things to impress me, aren't you." She was starting to glare at him.

"Maybe."

"Trying to make me realize my "hidden feelings", fall completely head over feet in love with you, and fall into the hero's arms with absolute devotion? Ryo, girls like me usually don't fall for those kinds of things. They normally just say thank you. That's it. Harsh rejection. Life isn't always a fairytale full of roses, you know."

"Blame it on hormones, if you want." He pulled out one of the roses from the vases, pulling off the petals one by one. Rika sat on the edge of the bed, right next to him, looking at the petals.

"But Ryo..." Her glare was fading now, falling into a tiny smile. "Very rarely, you end up surrounded by roses... and every once in a while... life isn't normal." She looked up at him and smiled. "And once in a million times... life ends up being a fairy tale, and has a happy ending." She was leaning closer to him, and she couldn't help it, she was completely drowning in those ocean blue eyes and that perfect-ryo-akiyama smile. She gave up.

"And the hero's hopeless plan?"

Rika grinned at him. "It worked."

Ayashi Fujiwara was in not a very happy mood at that moment. She had gotten up at _only _10:00 in the morning, and she had -gasp!- a zit under her eyebrow. After a complete and very thorough make up job by the cosmetic specialist, she _had _to deal with all of the nail polish, mascara, and reorganization of the pink lipsticks, and after all of _that, _she had to explain to her dear father that the reason the silly little credit card was used up was because it had just been too little for one week. And after that long and tiring day of work, she simply wanted to go back to sleep with cucumbers over her eyes. But no, she had to go out and visit her boyfriend-to-be and be very nice to the rest of the tasteless fan club. Standing outside the door of the hospital, she tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for the door to open, and visiting hours to begin. The fanclub was a ridiculous idea- after all, there was only one true love for Ryo, and that was obviously her. Perhaps she should create an "Ayashi-loved-by-all-especially-her-boyfriend-Ryo" club. That would be so much more tasteful...

That horrid hospital staff had kept her waiting here for half an hour. And Ayashi Fujiwara does not like to wait. She sighed. Might as well be the patient, loving, angelic girlfriend again. Opening her huge cosmetics bag, she began to test which color would make her eyes look teary-yet-joy-filled and just as absolutely close to perfection as possible.

"RYO-CHAN!" One of the more energetic fangirls started to scream.

Ayashi snapped the compact shut. "You are _not _to call him Ryo-chan, and _not _to think of him as anything but your leader's future boyfriend." She opened it again, adjusting makeup- yelling gave her wrinkles. Somedays, being the popular queen of school was _such _hard work.

What in the world is taking the hospital staff so long? Ayashi frowned at the nurse in front of the door. After a fangirl's misguided attempt to break down the door, the nurse had been standing there. Her feet hurt, and the nurse had a tacky lipstick color on. Vulgar. Her cellphone started to ring. _"Princess Ayashi, pick up the phone! Princess, Princess, pick up the phone!"_ Ayashi snapped it open.

Ayashi frowned at the nurse in front of the door. After a fangirl's misguided attempt to break down the door, the nurse had been standing there. Her feet hurt, and the nurse had a tacky lipstick color on. Vulgar. Her cellphone started to ring. Ayashi snapped it open. 

"WHAT." She held it closer to her ear.

"Papa! What a surprise! I was just feeling stress from the staff at the hospital my BOYFRIEND" She emphasized boyfriend, hoping the nurse would catch that very important fact, "is staying at. Dear papa, could we SUE THEM? Like you did to that disgusting redhead's mother?"

She listened for a moment, and then shrieked.

" YOU MEAN THAT _HER _MOTHER IS _THAT _PERSON! PAPA, I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU ACTUALLY SUED THE ONE AND ONLY RUMIKO-SAMA! SHE IS MY GUIDING LIGHT! PAPA! I AM FURIOUS! I SHALL NEVER SPEAK TO YOU AGAIN!"

Ayashi held the phone away from her ear for a moment, and then listened to it again.

"Well... If you promise to get me in before visiting hours, I will consider it." She turned her phone off, and waited for five seconds.

Five...

Four...

Three... A phone rang, and a harsh voice could be heard shouting from the other line.

Two...

One...

A voice came on the intercom. "Would the nurse in front of the hospital room that Akiyama Ryo is staying in at this moment please unlock the door and let one Ayashi Fujiwara in?"

Ayashi beamed triumphantly. The nurse glared. She slowly turned the key in the lock, muttering about spoiled little rich girls who had fathers to get the world to bend for them.

It had been a long day, and Ayashi was looking forward to talk with her loving to-be-boyfriend and tell him about her new idea- getting the one and only Rumiko-sama to disown Rika, but to adopt Ryo! Then when she married him, she would be part of the Rumiko legacy, AND married to Ryo! She was so close to genius it scared her.

So it was a bit of a shock when she saw her planned husband and her key to obtaining her part of the Rumiko legacy- besides the most perfect human being on the earth besides herself- was doing.

Sitting up on the hospital bed, Ryo Akiyama was kissing the one and only Rika Nonaka,with no intention of stopping soon.

Ayashi fainted.

Kay- Thank you very much! Tons and tons of thank you's! You made me feel guilty about not writing this, so I started..

cheriberigurl- I'm trying not to make Rika OOC anymore, but it's hard... > I like writing sappy stuff too.. I am trying not to do OOC stuff now! Thanks, I feel a lot better now!

lady-snow- lol.. You're kind of like my mom... and me..

Darksnowstarangel- Thank you! Glad you like them!

Kari Minamoto - Nope! Not stopping yet! I'm going to stick in some more chapters for this. Thank you for the suggestions!

DigiChick-Thank you! I'm a lot better now! Yes, I would love a cookie right now.. I'm trying to get my sister to bring me one, but she won't..

My Dream's Shadow- Thank you! I feel tons better now!

GTKari-123 - Thank you! Glad you liked the chapter! We don't have snow, but we have wonderful wonderful sunny weather!

KouichiGurl- Thank you! I'm really glad you like this, especially since you normally don't like 3rd season fanfics as much!

Thank you! I'm really glad you like this, especially since you normally don't like 3 season fanfics as much!

Lil' Lilo- Thanks very very much! I couldn't kill Ryo at all...

Cat2fat900- Thank you tons and tons!

Karika88- Sorry that took so long to update!

Sparkling-Ruby Gem- Thank you thank you thank you! I absolutely can not kill Ryo.. So he had to survive.. if Ryo died, I would be so sad..

The Authoress Note!

Absolutely wonderful people who were patient! I am very very sorry I haven't updated for a long long time, but the stress is going to my head and making it harder to actually find time to write... I have a bunch of piano competitions right now, (two on the same weekend, augh..) and so I am killing my arms and my fingers and my head and especially my time practicing. I really really want to win (I'm competitive... really competitive) so after I go through the contest, I'll be writing much faster. I am even putting off Naruto reading time for my practice and writing this! Hope you like it..

By the way, I know Rika was OOC, but who wouldn't be? I think this one is OOC too, so I might have to fix this after the contest is over...

I am obsessed with piano so much right now... - liahime


	11. 10 Slippers of Glass

Glass Slipper by liahime

10 Slippers of Glass

Lovely Disclaimer: If I owned Digimon, then my coworkers (my paid-slaves, buahahahaha!) would hate me because I would make them work much too much on Digimon.

Ryo was having issues with flowers.

It wasn't the flowers themselves, it was how to buy them. Ryo had dragged Kazu to the flower shop. Despite being Akiyama Ryo, with a patented smile fan girls would die for, he was a guy. And being a guy, who just happened to have a fan club that chased after him, a flower shop was not the safest place to be. One. There was normally only two doors, and it was hard to escape. Two, the flower shop he was going to was run by a family- the mother, the older sister, and the fan girl.

This he explained to Kazu as they headed towards Yamanaka Flowers, fan girl paradise, to go and buy the famous anti-flower actress some flowers. He left out one reason. Reason three? He was completely broke.

But of course, this could be left out.

At the Yamanaka flower shop, two clueless boys were being completely confused by the cashier at the counter, who was trying to sell them everything in the shop, insisting that the lucky girl would love it.

"So if you buy this 42 for the price of one half of 84 package, you can get a deal that you won't be able to find anywhere else!"

"Ma'am, I just want to buy one rose... The girl I'm buying it for- she doesn't love flowers like you do- it's nothing personal-"

"But... my poor daughter! She is going to be so heartbroken when she finds out I'm fired!"

"But aren't you a Yamanaka? And isn't this Yamanaka Flowers?"

"My MOTHER would fire me!" She squeezed a tear out of her eye. "PLEASE!"

The saleswoman's daughter peeked out from behind a huge display of roses. "Mom, don't embarrass the customers- RYO!" She whipped out her cellphone, speed dialing her president. "AYASHI! IT'S RYO!"

Reason four. Kazu ended up in front of the saleswoman, while Ryo quickly dropped the money on the counter and ran off as fast as he could, carrying a single red rose.

The saleswoman blinked, and then pounced on her next victim.

Several minutes later, Kazu had a delivery form in hand, and a soon-to-be-empty wallet. A delighted saleswoman had sold him a huge bouquet of deep red roses, for... who would he give it to anyways? His brain's first response was Ayashi. Wasn't it her that he had been in love with the whole time? The one person who he had adored for his entire (OK, partially...) life? The girl he was willing to spend $39.99 plus shipping and handling on, in risk of getting slapped?

He paused over the delivery form, pen in hand. Something wasn't right. And it wasn't just the overly-priced flowers.

He crossed out something on the form, writing something in. His inner Kazus argued within him.

_Geez, Ayashi is going to kill someone without flowers. _

_But wouldn't _someone _buy her some? She's popular. She's beautiful._

_She slapped you. She hates you. She's way out of your league._

_She's out of YOUR league too then, since we are BOTH inner Kazus. A guy can dream, can't he?_

_Hmph. Go and waste your money then, on some heartless rich girl._

Inner Kazus still not at peace, Kazu crossed out what he had just written, and wrote Ayashi's name back in.

Then he crossed out what he wrote and wrote another thing in.

And recrossed it out.

He couldn't decide!

One of the cashiers bumped into him, carrying a display of flowers to the stand. The card fluttered out.

_A Yellow Rose with a Red Tip indicates friendship falling in love. For that special girl in your life who might just become something more._

_ONLY $29._99 _plus shipping, handling, and note included._

Now who would that be? Not Ayashi... The more he thought about it, the less... perfect she became in his eyes. He saw through the contacts and the dyed hair. Through the sugary sweet she became around one of his closest friends. How she would blush and flutter around Ryo.

And into the truth.

Kami help him, he was confused.

He crossed out the entire form for the last time, and squeezed in his final decision.

Rika was having issues with the dress. It was very sparkly. Very lacy. The picture of a perfect Cinderella dress. Thanks to her _dear and most beloved_ mother- Rumiko had found out at the last minute- the modeling company had designed the costumes of all the cast. So Rika was left drowning in a huge puff of silk, lace, and glitter.

"_But darling, it's beautiful!" Rumiko held a hand over the phone. "The company would be delighted to design the costumes. Ah, the media! We can launch the new designs through this!" She turned back to the phone. _"_Guess what Yuka! We can launch the designs through a play! My daughter can model that dress, and then there's this ballroom scene that's perfect for that charming dress-" Rumiko kept talking into the phone._

_And things had rolled downhill._

After Ayashi Fujiwara fainted that day- only two days ago- the play tickets had officialy gone to the media. TV commercials, with a surprising amount of Rumiko's face, a magazine ad, and a billboard- again, with Rumiko in 50 percent of it- Rika had been busy completely. Practice. Horrid modeling with her mother. And the ultimate physical workout- fangirl dodging.

Fangirls. Very angry ones. Ayashi had apparently been well enough to tell the rest of the fanclub _exactly _what had happened in the hospital room that day, and they, like their president, were extremely unhappy. She now knew how Akiyama Ryo could eat as much junk food as he wanted and not gain weight.

Right after a long and exhausting drama practice, fangirls would swarm after her, chasing her as far as they could, filled with the complete intent of destroying the thief that had stolen the one and only Ryo, their future husband- if they could usurp Ayashi from her throne- and dropping her off a building. A tall one. Preferably with a spike covered sidewalk lit on fire.

So of course, she had no time at all to be nervous, right?

Sitting in the make-shift dressing room, ten minutes before the play, Rika was not nervous.

She wasn't nervous.

Not nervous.

She closed her eyes, calming herself down, becoming ice, erasing any nervousness she had. Not nervous. Not nervous. This was just a school play she had been blackmailed into doing, with an understudy for a prince that was inches shorter than her. Where she'd be wearing rags and mopping up after stepsisters. A meaningless school play that by the way had the news network, a major fashion and modeling company designing the costumes, several newspaper articles devoted to it, and a billboard over the highway. Of course she wasn't nervous.

Someone knocked on the door.

"WHAT." Rika lost it. The nervousness came rushing back. _Emotions are weakness. _She repeated that ancient motto and calmed down. "Do you need anything?"

A nervous stagehand poked his head in the door.

"Erm... A delivery from Akiyama Ryo." An experienced behind-the-scenes worker, he was used to nerve filled actresses. He quickly placed the rose on the table and darted out.

Rika walked over to the table. A single red rose was there, with a note attached to it.

_Wildcat..._

_I know you don't like flowers- especially roses, I know- and you find the meanings of the colors a pointless waste of time to remember... But Rika, I hope you get this, and I hope you'll remember the meaning of a single red rose._

_I'm really bad at writing these things._

_Let me start at the beginning..._

_I met you a long time ago, and we've been through a lot, neh? Digimon card tournaments- that day it looked like you were ready to kill anyone in your way... full of fire and energy, and actually real. Ice and fire and death glares all... With your emotions are weakness motto... that used to be mine too, you know... I used to be the never defeated king of cards... _

_And then I met you... and I started to fall._

_Rika... That day when you were running... _

_That day... I just want you to know that I'll be there for you, no matter what it is, no matter how much you hate me and all Rika, I have to tell you. _

_I love you. I always have, and always will. There were times you were talking to me; all I could think of was kissing you. Times you were glaring at me, times you caught me staring... _

_But you know all that, neh?_

_Good luck wildcat! - Ryo_

For a second, she wondered what it was. A red rose? What was that?

"ACTORS AND ACTRESS PEOPLE! TAKE YOUR PLACES!"

Rika rushed out of the dressing room, letter still in hand, and onto stage, ready for the play to begin. Jeri, in fairy godmother pink, grinned at her, off stage. "Good luck, Rika!"

The curtain lifted.

A single spotlight lit up the girl's flame colored hair. She seemed on the verge of tears, but still standing strong- in a position of brave hopelessness. Inside, Rika was panicking. Red rose? Red rose? What was that, again? The letter was tucked inside her sleeve, it was too late to put it back now. She scrubbed away at the floor, all the time wondering what it was. Was it.. friendship? What had Ayashi said it was in that card?

The stepsisters swept in. Hair piled atrociously high, Ayashi screeched.

"Cinders, aren't you done _yet? _You're getting too fat. Skip breakfast."

Elicia came in, dragging a muddy shoe onto the clean floor. "You missed a huge spot, servant. Skip lunch to clean it. And I want a white cake. Now."

The stepmother came in. "Girls, girls. Be kind to your _stepsister._ Bless her. Let her make _three _white cakes, so she can practice her baking. _That _needs work."

The play swept on, Rika still wondering. _What was the meaning of one red rose!_

She glanced at the audience, looking for a clue from Ryo. He grinned the patented grin at her, that was all. She swept through her brain for it. What was it?

Through the ball, she almost ignored Kazu. _Stop being obsessed, _she nagged herself. _It's just a rose. You'd think you were turning into Ayashi._

She returned her attention to acting.

But it wasn't working... The thought kept finding it's way back into her head, winding in between the blocks she put up around it. She looked at Ryo again. He smiled once more, in appreciation of the beautiful actress, her performance- and pure love. Brilliant, bright and beautiful. She grinned back, almost falling out of character. She stopped herself just in time.

Rika had just remembered the meaning of a single red rose.

The play went perfectly. Not a single missed line. Even the prince's understudy was performing well. Newspaper cameras flashed, a news network camera rolled. The audience was thrilled. The teacher was thrilled. Rumiko was thrilled. The play was a perfect success.

The last scene came up- the moment when Cinderella met the prince, and was revealed as the mysterious princess at the ball.

Kazu knelt on one knee, ready to place the glass slipper on the princess's foot.

The media was ready, zooming in closer. This could be one of the best shots of the year- famous model Rumiko's budding actress daughter, in her first play.

And Kazu turned from Cinderella-Rika and bowed low to the ugly stepsister, giving her a yellow rose, tipped with red. The drama teacher stood up, shocked. This was _not _supposed to happen. He should have been reciting the elegant proposal now.

In place of the elegant proposal, Kazu stood up, looking deep into the stepsister's eyes. Suddenly aware of the cameras around him, Kazu smiled sheepishly.

"This isn't the best time and place... And I'm sorry for the pressure...and umm... a time comes in a guy's life when..." Kazu was beginning to babble. He stopped. The cameras zoomed in even closer.

"Elicia... will you go out with me?"

And so the play ended as most real-life fairy tales do- unscripted, unrehearsed, and so perfect in their own unconventional grace. The prince and the stepsister were united together, with the consent of hundreds of audience members, and all the viewers of the news network's channel.

The audience stood up and roared.

Backstage, the former ice queen of Digimon and the reigning Digimon King were laughing together, Rika holding a scarlet rose, Ryo holding onto... Rika.

Ayashi stormed over. "LET GO OF _MY _RYO-CHAN, YOU LITTLE BRAT."

Rika raised an eyebrow. "I'm not doing a thing, Ayashi..."

"YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. RYO! DON'T TOUCH THAT GIRL! SHE'LL POLLUTE YOU!"

"So, I'm not supposed to do this?" He hugged her. Rika frowned at him.

"Ryo..." What was supposed to come out frustrated came out much more serenely than she would have had it.

"Or this?" He kissed her on the cheek. Ayashi clenched her fist tight.

"I'm going to ignore your momentarily lack of judgement and sense in your brain right now, Ryo-"

An over-eager photographer who had crept backstage clicked away on her camera. She pushed Ayashi out of the way, into the scenery. "KAWAII!" She squealed. "You two are making me money!"

And once again, for the third time, Rika and Ryo were immortalized in a captured moment in time, looking as if Ryo would never let his queen go.

And you know what?

He never did.

**AUTHORESS NOTE!**

**Hm... I think I'll leave an epilogue on this... Thank you everyone who was extremely nice to review, and thank you everyone who wished me luck with piano! (I won one, lost one... oh well..) **

**Does everyone remember Elicia? (She was a tiny part in 2 chapters..) I know that she or Kazu weren't big parts of the story, but I wanted to do this... Mainly because Kazu liking Ayashi was not good. Was it a bit awkward and kinda sudden? Sorry...Elicia was GTKari-123's character... if I made her OOC I'm sorry... **

**So next time, I promise, OK? I'll leave everyone a note. This time I can't..**

**Special Thanks to All that Reviewed:**

**Ryo Akiyama rocks!**, **kau-sama! Luzr-Gurl13, KristiexxNguyen, lady-snow, RyoRules, DigiChick, cheriberigurlKari Minamoto,Cat2fat900,GTKari-123, Darksnowstarangel, My Dream's Shadow, Anna, Kay, Sparkling-Ruby Gem, and Lil' Lilo**

**THANKS EVERYONE!**

**P.S.. lady-snow, I'm working on the request thing now... I'll try to get it done in time!**

**P.P.S... the uploading thing is making me lose the spacing of stuff! if anyone knows how to fix it, please tell me! augh..it's driving me crazy!**


	12. 12 Slippers of Shards

Glass Slipper by liahime:

12 Slippers of Shards

Disclaimer: This story... in truth, none of it was mine. Digimon, of course, isn't mine. Yamanka Flowers wasn't mine either (it's from naruto...) And though I put it into words, this is truly the world's story, reflected through my eyes and voice. From the reviewers, from family, from the people around me. This is merely a reflection in the glass of it

The survivors are always left with the shards. Glass falls- you are left with the shards, sharp and cold as ever, in thousands of pieces, making it impossible to return it to it's former shape. Try as you might, it won't fit back to how it was perfectly the same.

The end result isn't always worse than the beginning, however...

There are times when you are left with a happy ending.

Ayashi Fujiwara had taken to her bed and decided not to come out for eternity. However, one can not eat chocolate truffles and drink soda for more than 24 hours without needing to leave one's bed, so eternity lasted for three hours and the mushiest soap opera rerun marathon ever. After hours of watching the star's 'one true love' endure every twist and turn of fate there could possibly be to come back to his girlfriend, Ayashi called the television network.

"After all," she said, "who needs Ryo Akiyama when you can _hire _a gorgeous guy to love and adore you?" Her lifesize portrait of this unnecessary Ryo Akiyama was still hanging over her bed though, and she's still the president of his fan club. And she was always there, in the front of the mob chasing him.

The fanclub were all terribly, terribly, sad, but devoted their time and energy now to chase both Rika and Ryo, all with two motives in mind. One, to beat sense into their object of adoration, two, to beat sense violently into the thief who had stolen said object. So far, they hadn't succeeded. The track coach was begging on his knees, asking them all to join.

Luckily for Kazu and Elicia, things were completely peaceful with the occaissional bump. There was something about them that fit. Yin and yang, they were perfectly matched. The New York transfer "ugly stepsister" with the heart of gold and the grace of a true princess and the klutz prince with the easy smile. So different, yet same in their differences. White and black joined together in and endless circle, with bits of the other tying them together.

Then there are some romances that are butterflies and sparkling eyes and flowers... and though theyare rare, there are some that exist. Some by chance, some by fate, and some by...well, by force. And what other relationship is better for a fairy godmother? She too found her own happiness with one of the advisors to the King... A handsome young man with a smile as bright as hers, as bright as the sun... So once Jeri's eyes stopped glittering and sparkling for Rika's romance, she opened them up to her own life.

And found him.

And then there were Rika and Ryo- the prince, the reluctant princess.

Rika was fully in love with Ryo, learning more about the ancient game and art that had confused princesses who had been colder, more in denial. She was opening up... and though she still denied it, she was smiling. Laughing. Glowing in a golden, unseen light that surrounded her. Something simple, yet so powerful- something no amount of money could have bought. The joy of true love.

And it's not like Ryo didn't learn a thing or two. One can not easily learn the art easily, no matter how perfect a smile you have. And his princess... His princess wildcat was the perfect one to learn from. Thorns and twists and shattering hearts. Cold ice and burning anger that you endure, all for the sweet end result. Love's trials and rewards.

"Was it worth it?" he was asked. He could have had any girl he wanted, and he picked the ice queen? When there were reams of gorgeous cheerleaders in his fanclub? When he had models at his command, CEOs' daughters hanging on his every word?

He had laughed and grinned, trying to explain. But some things won't, can't fit into words. How you know the person throwing cold water on you is worth chasing after. Why people pick roses, despite the thorns.

After all, not all fairytales were perfect.

Life would be filled with those- princesses that scream, heroes that tripped over cloaks. When the right choice wasn't always the road always taken. Glass slippers will break.

The princess won't fall in love with the predecided hero.

The dragon won't always go away.

But through it all... in all fairytales, from the most perfect to the strangest, most unconventional.

The love stays the same.

_fin_

**AUTHORESS NOTE: **

**I can't believe it's over! sniff.. It was so fun writing this... especially writing Ayashi... oh well. Thank you to all my loyal (and not loyal) reviewers who read this...I know I skipped 11, but I don't like ending with that number. 12 is one of my favorite numbers... so it's 12 instead of 11 Slippers of Shards instead. I know that I didn't stick in any other relationship-stuff very well... but I wanted to write that! (plus it was waay too short to really count as a chapter...this is just too short..) Thank you to you all, you have made this a joy to write... I'm going to miss you all.. Your reviews got me to work whenever I was lazy, and you were all so caring.. But if you want to help me not miss you then... keep reading. **

**Please go read my new fanfic, Thorns, which is a ryuki sleeping beauty, and please review it too.. - kau-sama, my dear editor friend who is terribly sensible, who cares if this is a full blown commercial. Please go read it! and then Review! **

**Thank you To All!**

**Luzr-Gurl13 **

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**Ryo Akiyama rocks!**

**kau-sama! **

**asn water**

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**I thank you all for 100+ reviews! **

**-liahime**

**_the actual ending... if there ever really is one..._**

**_fin_**


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